The narrative of the 160-year history of the Boys & Girls Clubs of America has always been that the organization provides for children who live in communities in need.

The purpose of the first iterations of clubs, which at first solely served young boys, was to provide a better future for children who lacked opportunity. Since the inception of the first boys’ club, the organizations have offered sports, education and recreation to boys who otherwise wouldn’t have had access to those activities.

Boys’ Clubs provided services for children working in industrial and business plants, historical records show. When World War I began in 1917, the programs shifted from focusing on preparing boys for the workforce to readying them for the armed services.

“Boy Conservation as a vital war measure was emphasized from the platform and through the publication of special literature; and the work the (clubs were) doing as a patriotic service received the endorsement of prominent officials of the United States Government,” reads an excerpt from an article published in the Boys’ Workers Round Table in the early years of national organization of the clubs.

The Good Will Boys’ Club — the first-known Boys’ Club to exist — was founded in Hartford, Conn. in 1860, according to the publication.

Four women founded the Hartford club to help their community’s at-risk youth because they believed “boys who roamed the streets should have a positive, healthy place to live and grow,” according to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Hartford website. The club at one point disbanded for a short period of time and reformed.

The first club to maintain continuous existence was founded in Salem, Mass., in 1869, according to Boys’ Club historical documents, and it allowed girls to join in the beginning.

“From the outset it was settled that the work must be non-sectarian, and within two or three years it became evident that emphasis should be placed on work with boys and young men, rather than attempting to include in its membership girls and young women,” reads a 1918 article published in the Boys’ Workers Round Table.

At the turn of the century, clubs began to spring up across the country, though mostly concentrated on the East Coast. The clubs shared a common goal and practices at that point, but there wasn’t yet a national governing body.

The first Boys’ Club in New York organized in 1876 at a building at 10th Street and Avenue A, historical publications show. The then-Madison Square Boys’ Club followed soon after and was founded in 1884, according to the current organization’s website.

Thirty years after the first club formed, the first multi-club organization was created, also in Connecticut. In 1891, The Work for Boys Connecticut Committee formed with 14 clubs as members throughout the state. By that point, the regional organization served more than 4,000 boys, according to historical documents.

The first group to oversee clubs nationally was the General Alliance of Workers With Boys, founded in 1895. From then on, several iterations of similar groups came and went for the next couple of decades.

The organization known today as the Boys & Girls Clubs of America — formerly Boys’ Clubs of America — formed in 1931. With the new inclusion of girls, the organization changed its name to Boys & Girls Clubs of America in 1990, according to its website.

Today, the organization has around 4,600 affiliated local clubs, with about 50,000 adults on staff, according to the organization. More than 4 million children are served at those clubs, which are located in each state in the U.S., as well as Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and U.S. military bases.

For the past 50 years, the organization has lobbied for politicians to “prioritize children.” It has a congressional charter and receives federal funding.

The Boys & Girls Clubs of America has consistently been ranked as the largest youth organization in the country and in the top 15 of all nonprofits by the Chronicle of Philanthropy.

Hannah Dellinger is a Hearst Journalism Fellow covering general assignments for the Houston Chronicle.

Her fellowship began at the Greenwich Time.

Before starting the fellowship, Hannah worked as a breaking news and crime reporter at the Frederick News-Post in Maryland. Prior to that, she worked for large weekly newspapers in Virginia, covering crime for two years and education for three.

When she’s not working, Hannah spends as much time as possible outdoors with her 100-pound German Shepherd.